


Yellow Turtle, Pink Rose

by jactinglim, LeiRei



Series: RP with my RotTMNT turtle OC River [2]
Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Inspired by Roleplay/Roleplay Adaptation, Ninja, Roleplay, Roleplay Logs, Roleplaying Character, Turtles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:41:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26458114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jactinglim/pseuds/jactinglim, https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeiRei/pseuds/LeiRei
Summary: River meets Rosa and they became friends. He later fell for her but knew she's dating Donnie.RP with LeiRei's OC Rosa
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Male Character
Series: RP with my RotTMNT turtle OC River [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1923355
Kudos: 3





	1. Bumped

River managed to slip out of the Hidden City and hurried towards Middle Park Zoo, blending into the New York crowd as best he can.  
  


  
5:44 PM · Aug 27, 2020

Rosa is new in New York and she's very lost, when she bumped into the tall 'person'. "Oh! I'm sorry, I was just.. Not really sure where I was going."

"I'm F-F-FINE!" River sputtered as he brought his heart back down from his throat. He wanted nothing more than to flee, but instead heard himself blurting "A-are you ok?"

'SayYesSayYesSayYesSayYes,' he silently pleaded, that one word was all he needed to get back on track and away from risking discovery.

"I'm alright! Tho I am lost... Was looking for the zoo, but it seems like my map is confusing me." she sighs, looking at her phone then at him. "Are /you/ alright tho?? I was the one who bumped into you." she bows her head a bit. "I'm sorry for causing you trouble."

"No worries! S'my fault being in too much of a hurry to get to the zoo. I-... I could take you there?" 😅 River could kick himself, but he figured if she realises *the whole situation* she'd just turn him down. Hopefully.

Rosa tapped on her chin for a bit as she pondered, looking at him from head to toe, _'Looks a bit suspicious, but seems friendly enough...'_ "Alright! That would be really nice of you." she smiled brightly.

River couldn't help but smile back, "It isn't far, we'd be there in no time!" Huh. She didn't get creeped out by me. 'Guess NY really *is* full of weirdos. As they reached the zoo he casually asked, "Are you meeting someone here, too?"

She blushed a bit, playing with the strand of hair close to her ear. "Oh well, I am.. And he told me we have to meet in the zoo for our date," she mumbled the last part a bit, suddenly embarrassed.

"Sounds fun! I'm here to start my internship," River nodded as his eyes crinkled with a smile hidden behind the high collar of his coat. "Nice meeting you, Rosa!" He waved as he turned away, pulling out a school ID before walking towards one of the zoo staff.


	2. Charmed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When random tweets lead to hanging out

10:13 AM · Sep 13, 2020

Rosa tweeted: "I uh want to interact more with people..."👉👈

River replied: "lol same. What are you up to lately?"

Rosa: "Not much, just looking for someone to hang out with."👉👈

River: "I'm kinda new to New York City, we can play tourist and explore a bit? We can take each other's photos for our social media 😊"

(Soon the two are on their way to the same street where they first met by literally bumping into each other. They continued their conversation online as they walked to the meetup spot.)

"Oh I'd love that, sounds fun! I'm also pretty new, so exploring the city would be an experience," Rosa felt like she was vibrating a bit out of excitement.

(River found her first, standing outside the zoo's gates. He waved to get her attention as he approached, pointing a thumb behind him.)

"I'd take you around the zoo but I remembered you've already gone there... on a date," he reminded her with a light teasing tone.

She chuckled awkwardly at the mention of the date. "Uh well, that date kinda got canceled... Since he didn't show up," the girl pouted, fingers fiddling with her pink hoodie.

"Aw man, sorry to hear that!" he shoved his hands into his pockets, an unconscious tic whenever he put his foot in his mouth. "I haven't been to Middle Park... We could go around there if you want. So when your date pushes through you can still discover the zoo with him."

Rosa shrugged, "Nah, I doubt he's actually interested... Maybe it will be better if someone who knows the zoo well will show me around." She blinked up at him, "If he doesn't mind, that is," then shyly looked down.

He stepped closer, hands still in pockets, "Not at all. In fact," moving to shyly offer his elbow, his eyes glanced away. "He'd be honored to be graced by your company," he finished, hoping his surgical face mask covered his blush.

Rosa peeked up at him, then at his arm, to which she held on after she slowly beamed, "Sounds fun!" She grinned with a slight blush dusting her own cheeks.

He led her towards the ticket booth, only to be waved off by the lady behind the counter, "I'll throw a freebie fer her. Have a nice date, River!" She turned away before he could stammer "She-she's not... !" He hurried in and grabbed a [pamphlet](https://c532f75abb9c1c021b8c-e46e473f8aadb72cf2a8ea564b4e6a76.ssl.cf5.rackcdn.com/2017/05/12/1007a496we_CPZ_Handout_Cover_FINAL_2017.pdf), "Up for a stamp quest? First one's in the Tropic Zone!"

  
She giggled and hid her face at the ticket lady's words before proceeding to give the proferred pamphlet her full attention with a bright smile. She was already having fun. "Yeah! I've always wanted to do one of these," she looked up at him and happily tugged his arm, "Let's go, River."

'Yesss distraction success!' he thought jubilantly as he allowed the shorter teen to tug his other hand out of his pocket and jogged to keep up. The Tropic Zone had a crowd of young students holding similar maps. Joining them he greeted the Ranger, "I hope we're not late!" as the show started.

Said teen looked around and smiled at the ranger as well, then turned to the kids around them in thought, 'Seems like a very popular place.' She turned to River, "Is today your day off or something?"

"My work's done for the day," he answered, before turning to the ranger who did her usual program one is required to sit through to earn the first stamp. He encouraged the kids to participate by coaching them with clues to help answer her questions.

Rosa watched him closely and admired his passion with regards to everything about the zoo. She couldn't help but join him with a smile, asking a few questions of her own to the ranger.

They spent the afternoon collecting stamps, "The map says we could redeem a gift at the souvenir shop once we complete them."

Her eyes sparkled as she grinned up at him, "Wow, this tour just keeps getting better. Thanks, River." She hugged her arm again, feeling more at ease.

"Thank _you_. I'm having more fun that I expected. Your questions are pretty scientific back there," he commented, openly impressed.

"Ah well, you know... I _do_ love learning about new stuff," she flushed, usually shy about exposing her nerd side. The compliment was a welcome surprise.

"The zoo welcomes inquisitive minds like yours!" he blurted out, then subdued himself. "I mean, it's an option to consider in the future when planning careers. Whatever." They stepped inside the gift shop and presented their completed stamps, "Time to choose your prize, Rosa!"

"It would be nice to do volunteer work here and there. I'd love to update the system if y'all would let me," she smiled at him, before turning to ponder over the prize selections. Looking around, she then pointed at a yellow turtle keychain, "I'd like that one."

"O-oh..." he watched her claim the trinket with a flustered look. "I was so sure you'd choose the pink rose one," which he in turn took in his own hand, "I'll have this one, then. This flower is actually in the Intelligence Garden." He gestured out the door, "I could show you."

She got flustered as well and stared at he pink rose charm he held then looked up at him. "I uh... I'd love to see this garden with you," she shyly smiled as she fiddled with her own charm.

He led her out until they stood in front of the rose bush then took a good gold colored smartphone out of his pocket. "This should make for a good photo," he leaned close to his friend and snapped a pic.  


She smiled at the camera, then turned to him. "Tag me when you post the picture! I'd love to see it!" she giggled then looked around the garden, enjoying the view. With a soft smile she attached the charm on her phone. "I really enjoyed today, maybe we can do it again?"

He secured his own charm in his pocket, "Anytime, and I'll tag you! Today was fun." They walked out the zoo, and saw the ticket lady waving at them from her booth with a huge smile. 'I'll never hear the end of this,' he thought with a resigned shake of his head, smiling back.

She walked along the street and with a nod, said her goodbyes, "So I guess, uh... I'll see you around." She shuffled off, fingers fiddling with awkwardness, "Thank you again for today. I'll walk home from here."

"Take care, Rosa." he waved farewell before turning for home. He took a circuitous route to get inside Hidden City. Within the hour he was closing his bedroom door behind him, then carefully placed the pink rose charm on a corner of his desk where he could easily see it.

After she waved goodbye, she walked home with a nice skip in her step, caused by a good mood. Rosa headed to her room and plopped onto her bed, admiring the cute little charm on her phone. With a happy sigh before closing her eyes, she quickly fell asleep with a soft smile on her face.


	3. Backup

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rosa visited River while he was filling in for a zoo ranger.
> 
> (By this time River has started wearing his cloaker, even though turning human still freaked him out)

1:05 PM · Oct 26, 2020

"Riverrrr... Want to hangout??" She said as she clings on his arm, pouting.

(River laughed as he let himself stumble into her) "The answer is always yes, milady," he gestured at the zoo guide uniform he's wearing, "You might get bored watching me play backup guide, though." _Great, she sees me while I look like a dork._ 😅

Rosa beams up at him, and shakes her head. "I always enjoy watching you work!" she snuggles abut against his arm, blushing a bit. "I just like your company is all."

River looked down at a kid who tugged his arm, "Where's Ranger Rae?" "She couldn't make it so I'm her backup," he replied, to which the kid retorted "I don't want YOU! I want Ranger Rae!" "I-I'm sorry..." he stammered, struggling to hide his hurt as he maintained his smile.

Rosa frowns a bit at the child then, gets on their level, smiling bright. "Awz but I'm sure River here can guide ya'll just as well as Ranger Rae! Have faith in him, he's doing such a good job!" she smiles bright.

Ranger River went through the script to interact with the zoo guests as best he can, trying not to glance at his 'cheatsheet' clipboard too much and not get self-conscious. After giving their stamps and letting the next batch in, he turned to his friend, "You ok there Rosa?"

Rosa has just been sitting quietly watching River get busy with his work, smiling a bit as she appreciates and sees how hard he's working. As soon as River approaches she got up from her seat. "I'm good! You did well out there!"

"Thanks, this should be the last batch," River gestured to the newest zoo guests filling up the seats. "I'll change out after, then you can suggest what to do!"  
  


"Oh! Well we can head out and eat... Maybe?? Hmm any restaurant you'd like to try out?" she beams up at him, shy to say that she's asking for a date.🥺👉👈

"Are you up for pizza? I hear Tony Lou's is good."

"Absolutely! Let's go there then."

"Alright! Now, I'm gonna need to know your stance on pineapples..." 😉

"I uh, I don't mind it...👉👈"

"Whew! Great, 'cause I love them and I know people who hate me for it!" River laughed gleefully.

"Oh really now?? I love sweet foods, so having pineapple on pizza doesn't faze me at all!" she smiles at him, liking the way he laughs.

They arrived at the pizzeria where they were greeted by the staff, "Welcome to Tony Lou's! You're in luck, you just got our last free table," she told them as they were lead to a booth. They were about to slide in to sit across from each other when River looked down at his seat.  


"River? What wrong??" she looks around and suddenly realize what place it was, she looks down a bit and fiddle with her hands, pouting a bit at the memory of a certain purple clad turtle. "Huh... This place."

His attention was on a slice of pizza lying face down, scattered greasy toppings soaking through the fabric. Thankful he found it before creating a greasy-pants situation, he was about to call the attention of the staff to clean up when he stopped at the sight of her looking sad.

She smiled a bit at him after she noticed he was looking, then played off her sudden mood change. "Oh dear we should uh get a staff to clean that up!" she waves her hand a bit to call for some help, and watched as the said staff clean the mess. She stood next to him, quiet.

"The grease has soaked through so I can't sit there anymore," River explained, suddenly unsure as he glanced at the space beside her. "This is the last table so... we could go someplace else if you want?"

She pouts up at him, then nods. "Okay, we can do that.. Maybe to a different pizza place??" she suggested, perking up a bit.

He braced a hand at the table edge and leaned, relaxing beside her as he pocketed his other hand, "Your turn to suggest a place." He looked at her intently as he waited for an answer.

She pauses and took her phone out, leaning in a bit against him to show him her phone as she looks for places to eat. "Huh, there's another pizzeria just a few blocks away from here... Let's go check it out?" she titles her head a bit, a soft smile gracing her lips.

"Sure, I don't mind the walk," liking how the flecks in her eyes glittered when she smiles. Easing off the table, he straightened up and turned to Rosa, "Shall we?"

She nodded, gently wrapping her arm around his, smiling and checking if it was fine to cling onto him. "So uh, do you have work tomorrow??" she asked as they finally left the pizza place.

"Unfortunately, yes," he answered with a heavy sigh. His rueful smile softened as he enjoyed the warmth of her hands on his arm while they walked. "I'm glad you came when you did, the zoo's gearing up for the upcoming holidays. I doubt I'd be having much free time starting tomorrow."

"Aww I understand, wish we could hangout more." she hums abut as they walk, her mind going of to different things, thinking about the upcoming Halloween party April was inviting her for. "Hm... Are you gonna be busy on Halloween?" she asked a bit hopeful.

He considered, then brightened up, "Oh! I get off work early on Saturdays," he turned to her as they pushed through the doors to get in from the cold, "Why do you ask?"

"Well! Uh..." she blushes a bit and fiddles with her fingers. "April was inviting me to this party at her school, and maybe you'd like to uh... Join me?" she sat down and then looked up at him expectantly. "Ya know, just for fun and all that." she whispered, getting shy.

They slid into the booth across each other, after thoroughly checking for stray slices of pizza. "Sounds great! Thanks for inviting me. So, April is fine with you bringing new people?" River asked before ordering the pizza with pineapples.

"Oh yeah! She's totally fine with it, even encouraged it." she chuckles a bit and looked her reflection on the window, fixing her hair a bit. "I just, ya know... Would be nicer to have company there."

"Any dress codes I should know about?" he asked, placing a slice onto his plate before drizzling it with hot sauce then ate with a fork and knife. "I'd like to have an idea what to wear."

Rosa reached for a slice and begins to bite the tip before looking over River. "Well, it's not really required to wear a costume. We can just go casual if you'd like." she reaches for her soda to take a sip.

River grinned, "I'd wear a costume if you will."

"Oh! Oh... Well uh..." she fiddles with her fingers. "We can wear matching costumes... For funsies."

His brows raised as he smiled wider, "'Matching'? Like what?" he asked, stifling a giggle while trying not to sound too teasing.

She puffs her cheeks a bit, blushing as she feels herself get hot out of embarrassment. "Uh... Well, uh anything really! Just cute stuff...👉👈" she then took a deep breath to try and calm down, eating more of her pizza.

She suddenly felt awkward and shy again. Red faced.

The Japanese teen burst out laughing, "Sorry, sorry! You get so CUTE when I tease you." Playfully poking her cheek, he continued, "I'm honestly curious what matching costumes you'd suggest, though!" He pulled back & relaxed in his seat, enjoying himself as he waited expectantly.

"I uh..." she huffs and since her face is still red she gently pats it trying to calm down. "Well, I guess we can borrow a simple prince and princess costume... Or just spooky themed ones like witch and vampire." she blinks, looking through her phone for suggestions.

"You watched Toy Story? Woody wears yellow and Bo-Peep wears pink." He averted his eyes, "I mean, I know they're a couple and we're not but... I only have our favorite colors to work with." River then called the staff for the check before turning back to her, "Got a better idea?"

She perks up, nearly sparkles. "I love Bo-peep!" she smiles and giggles and stars imagining his she'd look like. "I'd actually wouldn't mind that.. even if we aren't you know, together, together." she mumbles her last few words, blushing a bit.

River took the leather bill holder to place a gold card before handing it back to the waitress, who promptly walked to the cashier. "Cool!" He blurted, then more softly, "Cool. We could drop by a Party City nearby to try on some costumes to rent," his brown eyes held a steady gaze.

"Yey! I'm excited! I love dressing up,"she smiled and bounced a bit in her seat, feeling all giddy and excited.

When the waitress came back, he signed then retrieved his card. "If you're not busy tonight, we could go now? I'd just need the map app to find our way to the nearest one." River then stood up and got ready to leave the pizzeria as he waited for her.

She checked her phone for the time and smiled, turning to him. "Yeah I'm not busy! Tho I do have to be home by a certain time, but one more trip won't hurt." she gets up and gently pats her skirt off of crumbs the pizza could have left then shyly shuffles her way next to him.

"I could walk you home after, if you want," he assured her, taking a gold smartphone out of his pocket to search on the app as they walked out the door. Glancing at her, he did a double-take, "Oh, hold still..." then took a handkerchief out to gently wipe a crumb off her lip.

She was distracted from staring at him that his words almost didn't register in her mind. "Oh! Oh well... That would be sweet of you, thank you." she then blinked when asked to hold still, then blushed as he touched her lip. "Ah! T-thank you... Didn't notice that."

"No biggie," he smiled, taking a gold AirPod to tuck under his grey beanie, before closing the matching gold case and putting it back in his pocket. Half-listening through the earbud for the directions he led her to the shop, where he pushed the door open and held it for her as she walked in.

She entered the store as he opened the door for her, and she began to look around, like an excited puppy that just found a play-store. She grabbed his hand and pulled him around to look at the costumes. "Oh I love this place, it has so many cute and spooky stuff!"

He easily laughed at how excited she was, "I'll go ask the staff if they have what we want in our sizes. You can show me what catches your eye!" he called out over his shoulder as he made his way to the counter, putting away his earbud back into its charging case.

Rosa saw some pretty hats and put them on, then her eyes focused on a cute bunny ears one and she beamed and took it, hurriedly going to River's side. "So.. So.. Do they have it in our size??" she peaked, looking up at him.

He walked up to her, carrying bundles of clothes, "Depends, if they'll fit," his eyes sparkled, "Let's try them on!" They followed the staff towards the dressing rooms as he handed Rosa her costumes in different sizes before stepping inside a cubicle with his.

"I'm excited!" she took the clothes and went in her own cubicle, smiling to herself as she took one and wore the costumes. It fit her nicely, happy at how it looked on her so she quietly left the cubicle and spun around in her Bo-peep costume.

He saw her step out as he did, "Oh hey, you look cute! I love it," before looking sheepish at how ridiculous he looks in his, "I'll need to uh... ask them for bigger sizes." 'Ok human sizes still confuse me!' he inwardly thought as he called a staff over.

Rosa stared and starts to giggle at the sight of him, blushing a bit as she looked, so she hid her face as kept giggling. "Oh River! Pfft ahaha you look good don't worry!" she snorts a bit and giggles some more, gawking a bit.

_'Ugh why he gotta be so cute /and hot?'_

"Thanks, no need to spare my feelings though," he laughed as he took the bunny ears hat he saw her holding earlier, then plopped it on her head. "Not everyone can look good in anything like you do," he smiled, slanted eyes crinkling as he ruffled her head.

She giggled some more and looked up at him with big doe eyes, smiling softly at his compliment. "Oh you flatter me too much River, but I meant what I said. You look good." she adjusted her skirt a bit, suddenly feeling shy as she looks down.

"As good as an overstuffed sausage! I get it," he said with a wide grin as he accepted the new bundle of clothes the staff handed him. "Give me a minute and let me try these on, I can hardly breathe!" he started unbuttoning the tight shirt as he walked back into the cubicle.

She punched his arm lightly as he continued to tease himself, then nodded as he watches him leave with the better size shirt. "Alright, I'll just be here. Gonna look for a wig as well." She roamed the shop, found one, and returned.

"A wig? Wow, going for accuracy!" the tall Asian got out of the cubicle carrying items to the cashier, satisfied with the fit this time. "So what time do I pick you up from your home? Are we going to walk to April's school from there?" He slid Rosas's costume with his and paid.

She stared up at him and wanted to protest about him paying for it, but he already did so she pouted and sighes as she looked up at him once more.

"That's sounds like a good idea actually! Hmm maybe around 6pm? The party starts at around 7pm." she ponders a bit, smiling.

"Alrighty then!" River took their bags in one hand as he took his card back from the cashier, "And don't sweat it," he faced her as they walked out, "the costumes are MY idea, remember?" He then followed her lead to walk her home.

She nodded, still feeling a little guilty. "It was.. But still.." she pouted at him. "Promise I'll make it up to you in some way!" They finally arrive at the front of her house and she turned to him with a grin. "Thank you for today, I had so much fun!"

"Thanks for visiting me," he replied, handing her her bag, "It was fun hanging out with you. I even got a Halloween party invite out of it~" he paused when their fingers brushed against each other, and their eyes locked. "I'll... 6pm tomorrow then!" he blurted before rushing off.

She smiled sweetly at him. "Of course, it would be a pleasure to have you as my date." she blurted out and stared back at him as their hands touched.

Then blinked as soon as he bolted away, she smiled to herself and goes to her room, smiling all giddy and blushing.


	4. Halloween

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rosa invited River to April's school Halloween dance.

6:00 PM · Oct 31, 2020  
  
"Happy Halloween  [Rosa](https://twitter.com/_mintea_draws)! I'm at your door. You ready?"  
[](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27132520/chapters/66256864)

Rosa was nervous, she never really gets dressed that often, let alone put on makeup.

She didn't put on the wig as it felt it was too much and just went with fixing her hair.

She greeted River with a smile. "I'm ready! Sorry if I made you wait too long." she bashfully said.  


River just stood there, smiling like an idiot for who knew how long, before he caught himself and responded, "Not at all!" Stepping closer he murmured, "You're worth the wait," still with his idiot smile, then cleared his throat and stepped back. "So which way to April's school?"

She looked up at him, admiring just how handsome he looked and smiled back. "You look good! Yellow really does suit you." she then nodded, holding onto his arm. "It's just a few blocks from here, let's go!" she was beaming and in a good mood, happy to have his company once more.

"Thanks," he glanced down. Nervous over meeting her friend, he let the cool autumn breeze and the festive atmosphere calm him down, watching other costumed people along the way. They reached the school, where he could hear the music thrumming from inside, "How do you know April?"

"Her school would visits ours during science fairs! Met her during one of those fairs, and became friends soon after." she smiled explaining, adjusting her hat a bit.

She turned at the door and took a deep breath, social gatherings still made her nervous.

The heavy beats of the loud music seemed to envelop them, felt as much as heard, as soon as they stepped into the ballroom of the Halloween dance. Tables were set-up covered in white cloth and set with plates and utensils, with pumpkin centerpieces, washed in UV and neon lights.

She looked around seeing all the beautiful costumes people were wearing and she started to get giddy and excited at the sight of the decoration and food.

"What do you want to do first?? Dance? Eat?" she had to lean in really close to make sure he hears her.

He bent down to listen to her and answered back, "We could find April first?" he suggested as he looked around in the unfamiliar venue, trying not to get distracted by the orange and black balloons, "We could let them know we're here before deciding where to settle in."

"Oh true! I'll message her and tell her we are here!" she replied and begin to tap away on her phone, vibing a bit to the music as she slowly relaxed and blended into the feel of the room.

He walked towards the buffet table, gently pulling Rosa along who was holding onto his arm. "Here," River handed her a cup of punch, "we can drink and snack a bit while waiting to meet up with your friend."

They enjoyed the refreshments until she saw April running towards her, in her cute little witch outfit, she beamed and greeted her friend, hugging her tight. April happy to see her, just as much as she was. "April! Here's River, the guy I told you I was bringing. ❤️️ "

"Thank you for letting her invite me," River greeted April, shaking her hand, "I'm glad to finally meet you! Your witch costume is impressive!" he mused internally, _'It looks like it's straight out of Witch Town...'_ then shook his head, laughing in disbelief, _'Nah. Coincidence.'_

April seemed to be pleased and even whispered something to Rosa, making her blush. 

April then left them alone, as Rosa played with her skirt a bit, as she tried to hide her embarrassed face.

_ 'Ugh April and her teasing.' _

He looked around for a table with at least 2 vacant seats. "Oh hi! Are these seats taken?" he asked, "Nice turtle alien costumes by the way. I love Jupiter Jim!" waving at the 4 guys seated at a table. He then turned to Rosa, "April, teasing? What do you mean?"

Rosa was still a bit distracted by April's teasing and didn't realize who River ended up picking a table with. 

She blinked, and nearly had her heart sink in both anxiety and awkwardness. 

She then shuffled towards the table with a small smile. 

"Hey boys," she greeted them.

Rosa acted casual and greeted them all before sitting next to River, at the farthest side of the table. "Nah, it was nothing... April was just being playful, is all." Mikey excitedly went to her asking for pictures. Rosa couldn't help but smile, seeing the youngest sib was brightening up her mood, until she briefly caught eye contact with the purple banded turtle, then she felt weird. 

It's been a while since they saw each other. She offered a small smile. And he nodded at her.

Before both of them looked away.

Yeah it's gonna be a long night.

"Oh wow, you guys know Rosa? Glad we found this table then, I'm River!" the Japanese youth waved to the turtle alien with the orange bandana. He wondered at her interaction with the turtle alien in purple so he turned to her, "Is everything fine?" he asked.

Rosa nearly jumped a bit at the question then nodded. "Yeah! All is fine, the music must be just... starting to distract me." she chuckles, and stood up. "Imma... Imma just go get some fresh air for a bit." she pats his shoulder, giving it a squeeze before walking out.

She wasn't really sure what to feel, it's been months since she last saw or heard from Donnie, she basically just jumped to the conclusion that he dumped her. 

She hurried out to the back of the school where a bunch of kids were hanging out. 

It was quiet there, so she relaxed.

_'Did I do something wrong?'_ he wanted to go after her, but she would have asked him to join her, right? _'Screw it,'_ he resolved, moving to stand up. 

"So, you're the one who stole her from me."

The tall Asian turned to the voice who stopped him, it was the purple costumed guy. "Excuse me?"  


Donnie stood up and stared River down. "You heard what I said, now stay out of this." he grumbled, hands on his hips as he glared at River. 

"Can't believe Rosa would go for someone like you." before he left to follow Rosa outside.

Rosa was quietly sitting in the edge of the schools fountain looking up at the moon, when she felt someone tap her shoulder. 

She expected it was River so she was surprised to see Donnie instead. She blinked and felt her heart squeeze. 

"Donnie?"

"Rosa."

He sat next to her.

It was awkward, Rosa didn't know what to do or say. So she continued to swing her legs, trying to ease away her anxiety.

"So, you just decided that we are over then?"

Rosa stared at him. "What? We are. We are done." she begins to tremble, she can't believe he had the audacity.

Meanwhile, River moved to go where Rosa and Donnie went when he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see it's the orange clad turtle alien, "They _need_ this talk," Mikey told him, looking sad. "I'll let them," he assured, "But I need to be there for her after."

She clenched her fist and stared at him. "You _ghosted_ me! Stood me up on countless planned dates!! You left me on read and never replied for _months!_ " she was shaking in anger as tears started to spill.

Donnie just stared at her, indifferent, "But we never broke up! You even cheated on me!"

Rosa couldn't believe what she was hearing as tears fell hotly down her cheeks. Her hand moved and before she knew it, she slapped him across the face.

"Fuck _you,_ Donnie, you have no idea what I went through to even try to move on from you." 

She sniffled, turning away.

"Just leave... We're over, _officially_ over." she sobbed softly, hugging herself.

He was about to say something before deciding against it, then stood up and left her side.

Rosa sat there all alone, suddenly feeling cold and miserable. 

"I wanna go home..."

Watching from a distance, River waited until he saw Donnie walk away. After that he slowly stepped up and gently placed his vest on Rosa's shoulders before sitting down beside her at the fountain. He stayed silent but let her see him and his handkerchief, both at the ready.

Rosa sniffled and frowned, knowing her makeup was ruined, she sighed and proceeded to use wet wipes from her bag to clean her face up. "Sorry you had to see me like this River..." she choked back tears, feeling far more alone than usual. "I just wanted to have fun and be with you."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know it would end up like this," he said in a soft voice as he took the wipes and gently cleaned her face. "I love... being with you," done cleaning, he turned back towards the dance hall, where music spilled out. Hearing a slow song, he asked "Up for a dance?"

She offered him a smile, tired but genuine. "Me neither..." she then stood up and nodded. "I love being with you too... So yeah, of course I want to dance." her eyes crinkled a bit as she smiled, slight tears still present.

He stood up to his 6'2" height, then held both her hands to pull her to a standing position. Stepping closer, he nudged her arms up to place them around his neck, before wrapping his around her waist to give her a long, tight hug. After a while, he started swaying to the music.

She blushed at their sudden closeness, but his warmth was a welcoming feeling, she smiled softly up at him and swayed along with the music, leaning her head again this chest and closing her eyes, relaxing and enjoying the moment. 

"Thank you..." she whispered.

He stayed silent, simply listening to the song ending.

_ Let us be in love _

_ Let's do old and grey _

_ I won't make you cry _

_ I will never stray _

_ I will do my part _

_ Let us be in love tonight. _

He then loosened his arms to gaze down into her face and smiled.

She smiled back at him after listening to the song, her heart fluttered at the way he looked at her. She leaned close, standing on her tiptoes, to kiss his cheek. "I'm really glad you came with me."

Blushing profusely, he smiled wider, "I... I'm glad too!" He stepped back in a daze, feeling his face heating up as he looked back to the ballroom. "I could grab some food to bring out, would you be ok staying out here?"

She pulled away and nodded, sitting back down on the fountain. "I'll wait for you here then, thank you." smiling rather fondly at the tall man.

Back inside he saw the 4 turtle aliens filing out of the ballroom, Mikey met his eyes and simply nodded. Mutely River could only nod back. Seeing April with them, he told her, "I'll take Rosa home after we eat," feeling awkward, "I hope we meet again under better circumstances."

Waiting alone outside, her legs began to swing again as she stared up at the moon. She sighed, a frown forming as she remembered everything that just happened.

Another heavy sigh, then suddenly her phone vibrated. Curious, she checked and was surprised.

'I'm sorry' 

A message.

From Donnie.  


Feeling her heart pounding inside her chest, she ignored the message. She desperately rubbed at her face as she felt tears begin to spill again. 

'No, please... I'm over you.' she whispered to herself, trembling in the chilling breeze. 

'I am... _Right??'_


End file.
